Tomato Seeds
by Lady Cousland
Summary: Anissa and Kevin remember their first meeting on their wedding day.


A/N: I noticed that there weren't enough Anissa/Kevin (or Kasey) fics out there. I don't understand why, since she's one of my favourite characters. I hope you enjoy! Don't forget to leave a review! No matter how short they are, I always appreciate them!

**Tomato Seeds**

Kevin smiled nervously at the guests sitting in the pews around him. His friend Luke grinned back at him, remembering how anxious he'd been on his own wedding day. He gave Kevin a thumbs-up, which the groom returned as a small, almost imperceptible wave, and turned to face the back of the church, where he hoped Kevin's wife would appear soon. The groom said a silent prayer to the Harvest Goddess, hoping that Anissa hadn't changed her mind.

Kevin knew that his bride could have done better. She was far more elegant than the other girls on the island and a good farmer to boot. He always wondered why she'd stayed here. She would have thrived in better conditions, not that she hadn't thrived on Castanet. Anissa was a wonderful woman and a proud, yet generous soul, Kevin knew. He had known that from the first day he'd met her, almost a year ago.

"_Kevin!"_

_Kevin turned around to face the source of the shout. It was Ruth, a meek woman who sold fresh produce in her shop. She looked happier than he'd ever seen her, he noticed, as he walked toward her._

"_Hello, Ruth," he said politely. _

"_Have you met her?" the older woman asked. When Kevin looked back at her, confused, she added, "Anissa. Have you met Anissa?"_

"_Your daughter? I thought she was away," he said. _

"_She came back this morning!" Ruth announced. "You have to meet her, really. She's out in the back."_

"_I'll go do that," Kevin said, smiling. _

_Ruth walked away, probably toward Harmonica Town, Kevin decided. He himself headed for the back of the building to speak with Anissa. He'd heard a lot about her from Ruth, but also from Taylor, Anissa's brother. Their father, Craig, spoke little of his daughter, but what he did say was enough to pique Kevin's interest. He was curious to finally meet her._

"_Hello?" Kevin called, after he'd reached the field behind Marimba Farm._

"_Who's there?" A woman turned around to greet him. She lifted a hand to her heart-shaped face to wipe a smudge of dirt away from it, but she only made it worse._

"_Here, I'll get that for you," Kevin found himself saying. He walked up to Anissa and got rid of the earth carefully. As he pulled away, his hand slipped and he brushed her lips accidentally. He blushed, embarrassed, but was slightly relieved when he realized that she was turning scarlet as well._

"_I'm Kevin," he told her, looking down at the floor._

"_And my name is Anissa." She, despite her embarrassment, kept her head high, unlike the farmer standing next to her. She simply stood there, her cheeks red, obviously waiting for him to say something. _

"_I live over there," Kevin offered lamely, lazily pointing to his farm. _

"_I live here," Anissa said unnecessarily. She hid her embarrassment well, but not well enough and there was another awkward silence._

_Sensing the tension, Kevin decided it was time for him to leave. "I should go. It was nice meeting you."_

_She tilted her head and stayed silent. He watched her for a moment before shrugging and turning around._

"_Wait!" Anissa said loudly. Kevin admired her delicate hand as she slipped it into the pocket of her apron. She pulled out a small paper bag._

"_Seeds?" _

_Anissa nodded, holding out the bag. Kevin took it from her, taking special care not to touch her hand._

"_I initially planned to give you some oranges from our farm," she said, looking him in the eye. "But I decided that these would suit the moment better." She smiled nervously. _

_Kevin took a glance at the package. Tomato seeds. He looked up at Anissa's smiling face before blushing even more. _

"_Thank you," he said quickly, stuffing the bag into his own baggy pocket. He spun around and ran away, doing his best not to trip._

"_It was my pleasure," Anissa called after him, knowing very well that he wouldn't answer. She didn't mind, though. She found his obvious embarrassment endearing._

Anissa stood outside the doors of the church, preparing herself for her entrance. Despite being sure of what she was going to do, the young woman was nervous. She sighed and looked down at the ground. She was usually so composed, no matter what she felt inside, yet today of all days, she was unable to contain herself.

As her mother gave her the signal that it was time to walk down the aisle, Anissa reminded herself that today was a gift. Every day with Kevin was a gift. The corners of her mouth lifted ever so slightly as she remembered the very first present her husband-to-be gave her.

_One Sunday afternoon, the door to Marimba Farm chimed open. Anissa heard it from the kitchen, when she was washing lettuce destined for her lunch. "I'll be there shortly!" she called, using a cloth to dry her hands._

_It seemed she wasn't quick enough, as the visitor appeared in the doorway._

"_Hi, Anissa." It was Kevin. Anissa was glad to see him. She hadn't spoken to him since the day they'd met, and she had begun to worry that she had offended him somehow. _

"_Kevin," she said, nodding in his direction._

"_I brought something for you."_

"_Really?" Anissa asked, genuinely surprised. "That really isn't necessary, you know," she added._

"_Wait until you see what it is before you say that." Kevin smirked. Anissa was happy that it wasn't as awkward as it had been the last time. Perhaps he'd forgotten the whole conversation. He was a man, after all, and most of the men Anissa had known didn't care for such things after they had passed. Though Kevin didn't seem like all the others._

"_What is it?" she asked curiously._

_He pulled a small paper bag from out of one of his large pockets. He held it out to her and she took it from him, noticing that he was blushing ever so slightly._

"_A tomato," she said simply, after taking a look into the bag. "That's brilliant!"_

"_It's the best one I grew so far. I planted the seeds you gave me," he said, taking his cap off and twirling it in his fingers._

"_I'm going to try it now, if you don't mind. I was just making lunch. Would you like to stay?" Anissa offered, her smile wide._

_Kevin grinned. "I think I will. Thanks." He pulled out a chair and sat down, watching as Anissa sampled a piece of his crop._

"_It's truly delicious. Thank you very much." She noticed him looking at her strangely and it was her turn to blush._

"_It was no trouble," he told her, leaning back in his chair. "I was going to try to top your gift, but you're much too witty for me to even consider trying," he said humbly. "Even if your cheeks are matching the vegetable right-" _

"_It's a fruit," Anissa interrupted him quickly. Her cheeks burned. Why was she blushing? _

"_Right." Kevin nodded. "I was just checking." Noticing the look on Anissa's face, he corrected himself. "I most likely forgot because I'm in the presence of such a lovely-"_

_Anissa looked at him. He was so very different from the last time she'd seen him. He was much more outgoing this time. It seemed like the Kevin she'd met the first time in her field was simply the product of a bad first impression. _

"_What's wrong, Anissa?" he asked._

"_Nothing's wrong," she answered quickly. "I'm just surprised."_

"_About what?" he asked, urging her to elaborate._

"_You," she said simply. _

"_Believe me, I'm just as surprised as you are," he admitted. "I'm not sure how I've managed to get this far."_

"_You're doing fine," Anissa assured him._

"_I'm sure I'll do better when I come back to visit tomorrow." Kevin grinned sheepishly, blushing profusely. He stood up, pulled his cap back onto his head and left, leaving a bewildered Anissa behind. _

Never a dull moment on this island_, she thought as she hurried to the window to watch him walk away._

Inside the church, Kevin watched as the large front doors opened and his wife stepped in. He was relieved to see her. After hearing his friend Gill's horror story, he had been afraid that his wife wouldn't show, either. Kevin winked at Gill, who nodded at him, before turning back to his wife.

She was beautiful as always. He watched her as she walked down the aisle elegantly, her head just as high as it had been on the day he'd met her. He wondered if she felt the same excitement he did. He hoped she did. He'd been looking forward to this day for a long time and was ecstatic that he got to share it with her. He couldn't imagine being with anyone else.

He held out his hand to his wife and she took it, gracefully walking until she was beside him at the altar. She smiled timidly and he squeezed her hand back.

The priest made the choir stop singing with a wave of his hand and soon the church was completely silent. "Brothers and sisters," he began, "We are gathered here today to witness the marriage of Anissa and Kevin. I understand," he said, looking in Kevin's direction, "that the bridegroom would like to say a few words before we begin."

Kevin looked into Anissa's amber eyes, a certain memory coming to mind. "It all started with a bag of tomato seeds..."


End file.
